The Queen of Pop came under fire when she shared an image on Instagram of Rocco - her son from her marriage to director Guy Ritchie - holding the booze as he stood between two friends who were clutching bottles of vodka.

The 55-year-old captioned the snap: "The party has just begun! Bring it! 2014."

The picture, taken during the family's New Year break in Switzerland, met with some criticism online, with one fan saying it was "extremely irresponsible" and another questioning whether the boys were old enough to drink.

However, Madonna quickly fired back to explain that Rocco and his friends hadn't actually been drinking the alcohol.

"No one was drinking we were just having fun! Calm down and get a sense of humour! Don't start the year off with judgment!" she wrote.

Madonna has been on holiday in Gstaad with her children Rocco, Lourdes, 17, and eight-year-olds David and Mercy.